Piastri Seeks to Regain Ground at the Mexican Grand Prix
The championship leader, Oscar Piastri, placed fourth in the first practice session of the Mexican Grand Prix. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc set the pace.
Piastri, from Australia, will seek a solid weekend to boost his path towards his first title. His championship lead has been reduced since his victory in Zandvoort at the end of August.
Since then, he has been surpassed by Lando Norris and Max Verstappen in the following four races. Currently, he leads Norris by 14 points and Verstappen by 40.
In the Austin Grand Prix, Piastri was separated from his rivals by the Ferrari drivers, Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, who finished third and fourth respectively. Piastri will be wary of the threat they pose this weekend.
Leclerc finished the session 0.107 seconds ahead of Kimi Antonelli, a Mercedes driver. Piastri was more than four tenths off the pace and behind Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg.
The first session at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez was not representative, as Norris and Verstappen, among nine other drivers, did not participate.
Norris ceded his car to Pato O’Ward, while Verstappen’s Red Bull was driven by the 18-year-old British driver, Arvid Lindblad. Norris and Verstappen observed the session from the pit wall.
Hamilton and George Russell were also present, as the teams fulfilled their obligation to allow rookie drivers to participate in practice sessions four times during the season.
Lindblad was the best of the rookies, finishing sixth and increasing his chances of getting a place in the Red Bull team for next season.
